ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED AT BACKBENCH UK Toby Fountain’s article Britain’s military identity crisis: Questioning our place in a new balance of power is centred on the idea that Britain is in ‘a schism between an old Britain we cling on to that no longer exists and the new Britain in a new world that we are reluctant to acknowledge’. His argument stems from this point, but it’s … Continue reading Why the world needs an engaged United Kingdom

Ramadan is the 9th month in the Islamic calendar, and is observed by Muslims worldwide as a month of fasting, during which you only eat after sunset and before sunrise. Ramadan isn’t just fasting from food, it’s also a fast from bad deeds. It’s supposed to make you self-conscious and self-aware. Muslims are also instructed to refrain from sinful behavior that may negate the reward of fasting, … Continue reading A short blog on Islam

In the past 24 hours, I’ve noticed something. 2016 seems to have got a bad press. People have turned ‘2016’ into memes. All the awful things that have happened this year. There’s one featuring Leonardo DiCaprio that I have featured here. But here’s the thing. I don’t like cynicism, or negativity. I see these jokes about how awful 2016 has been, and think “it can’t … Continue reading 2016: Was it all that bad?